Unit History: RAF North Luffenham

RAF North Luffenham was a Royal Air Force station in Rutland, England, 1940 - 1998. It is near to the villages of Edith Weston and North Luffenham.

The station was built as a training airfield, opening in 1940. It was later taken over by 5 Group of Bomber Command as a heavy bomber base, and was expanded by the building of concrete runways later in the war. In 1951, the station was transferred to the Royal Canadian Air Force to become the temporary home of 1 Fighter Wing, the first Canadian NATO base in Europe. 1 Wing moved to Marville, France in 1955.

From 1959 to 1963, North Luffenham was home to PGM-17 Thor intermediate range ballistic missiles. From 1965 to 1997 the Joint Services Language School was based here. A plaque to commemorate the Language School was unveiled in 2005 by Air Commodore Bruce Benstead, the last Station Commander at RAF North Luffenham.

Recruits from RAF Swinderby competed their fieldcraft training at this base in the late 80s and early 90s.

The station was taken over by the British Army and renamed St George’s Barracks. As an army base it has been home to battalions of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and the King’s Own Royal Border Regiment, (later 3rd Battalion, the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment). In August 2007, 16th Regiment Royal Artillery relocated here from the Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich.

Memories of RAF North Luffenham

(Memories written by members of Forces Reunited)

RAF NORTH LUFFENHAM in 2008

Written by maggie dray (nee wilshaw)

of all the F Flight Aerial lads at the B.B.Q 's at RAF North Luffenham, and them being at my house on the home brewMick Purvis,our sgt Little Diddy,Basic,Graham Bourne, Dave Highgate, whom still has my suitcase that he borrowed to go Cyprus with this is just a few of the gang. wish we could find themDave Wilshaw (my now X) Trying to beat mick at cards